Patrick Collins papers

Patrick Collins was born March 17, 1833 in Ireland and immigrated to the United States as a young man. He enlisted in the army in 1855. He served in the 14th Infantry during the Civil War and was honored for his service at the Second Battle of Bull Run and the Battle of Antietam. After the Civil War he was sent west, first to Fort Vancouver and then to Fort Boise, Idaho Territory in 1865. He left Fort Boise in 1866 for assignments in Oregon, Arizona and California, and returned to Fort Boise in 1876. He died on November 11, 1879 from injuries received in an accident in the garrison ambulance.